James B. FrankChief of Operations
Chief Jimmy Frank has served with Mobile Fire Rescue Department for the past 31 years. The first five years of his career he served as a Firemedic on a rescue ambulance. During this time, Chief Frank earned his SCBA Specialist (Smoke Diver) Certification. He was promoted to Driver and continued serving as a Paramedic on an ambulance for another three years. He was then promoted to Fire Service Captain and served in that role for fourteen years. During his time serving as a Captain, Frank also became certified as both a Hazmat Technician and Rescue Technician. He served as a Rescue Officer on Alabama Task Force One (USAR) Team at which time, he was honored to serve on multiple deployments.
As a Captain, he was also awarded three Meritorious Operations Awards and one Medal of Valor. He was then promoted to District Chief and served in District 4 for three years. Over the past year, Frank has been assigned as District Chief of Finance and Planning where he has been instrumental in establishing a long-term fleet replacement plan, improving the equipment repair process, overseeing construction of new fire stations and renovations of existing ones. Frank was promoted to Chief of Operations in September of 2018.
In addition to SCBA Specialist, USAR, and Hazmat, Chief Frank also holds certifications in Swift Water, High Angle, Trench, Confined Space, and Structural Collapse Rescue. He is certified in EOC Operations, Basic Incident Command, and is beginning the Executive Fire Officer Program at the National Fire Academy. Chief Frank also holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Fire Science.